Window-sash opener



July '1 1924.

w. F. ROTERMUND WINDOW SASH OPENER Filed .July 5, 19?.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 1 1924.

w. F. ROTERMUND wnwow sasu OPENER Filed July 5, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 a .a 1 i 3 l. vrA m" 4 uH 754". I

6 7 9 9 l D N u M R E T O R F w 4 2 9 1 July 1 wmnow SASH OPENER Filed July 5., i921 a sheets-5mm. z

//v vENToR HTTORNEY M a W a 3 I n H 0 Patented July 1, 1924.

UNlTED STATE WILLIAM F. ROTERMUND, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

WINDOW-SASH OPENER.

Application filed July 5, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. ROTER- MUND, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seattle, countyof King, and State of Washington, have invented new and useful Vindowfiash Openers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and'exact specification, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention is a device which enables one to raise and lower window sash by turning a small crank which may be placed near the bottom and on the side of the window frame. I

It also embodies a metal runway for the sash, open hinges at one side of the sash so that either sash may be swung open and removed if desired; and an attachment in which is a. coil spring similar to the spring in a curtain roller, which winds up as the sash moves downward and being placed on the opposite side of the sash assists the raising device when raising the sash.

One object of the invention is to provide a window sash which may be easily raised and lowered at all times of the year, in high or low temperatures and in wet or dry climates.

Another object is to provide a window which will automatically lock itself wherever it may be stopped.

A further object is to provide a window similiar to a casement window which will at the same time slide up and down to open or close, instead of opening out which makes italmost impossible to screen.

A still further object is to' provide a window consisting of. an upper and lower sash, sliding in metalrunways and-having automatic adjustments for taking out expansion or contraction of the Window being operated by a device whichwill raise and lower either sash individually or both of them together.

lVith these ends in view the invention em bodies a pair of gears operated by a smaller gear mounted upon a shaft which may be turned by a smaller lever which may be operated by hand, or by a motor, or by any suitable means. The twolarger gears also mesh with two other smaller gears mounted upon square spindles which project upward and have Worms on their upper ends which Serial No. 482,429.

mesh with gears mounted in the window ward or downward and as the racks are fastened on the sides of the sash they move the sash upward or downward, thereby opening or closing the window. There'is also a second lever fixedly mounted on a sleeve around the shaft of' the small gear that turns the two larger gears and on the other end of the sleeve is a lever with a rod in the end of it projecting downward so as to connect to the end of another lever which is pivoted in its center. As the first of these levers is moved to the right or'the left it raises or lowers the small gears meshing with the tops of the larger gears so as to throw either of them out of mesh when it is desired to operate only one sash.

The invention also embodies two sets of small gears each'containing'two gears one of which engages a rack on the opposite side of the sash and the other of which has a coil spring mounted upon its shaft, so that as the window is moved downward the spring winds up thereby always acting upon this side of the sash and tending to move it upward so as to assist the main operating device. In these sets of gears is also a latch which looks the spring in any-position if the window is swung open on its hing.

'The invention also embodies a metal covering for each side of the sash and metal runways so that there is absolutely no possibility of any friction caused bythe swelling of wood or from fresh paint.

Other features and advantages of the invent-ion will appear from the following de-e scription taken in connection with the drawings, wherein I Figure 1 isthe front elevation of a window. v

Figure 2 is a section on line 22 on Fig-' ure 1 with parts omitted so as to makethe necessary parts more clear. Figure 3 is a section on ure 2. 1

Figurelis a'sectionon line 4-4 on Figure 1 showing the operating gears below.

Figure 5 is a section on line 55 on Figure 4 with parts broken away. i

line on Fig- Figure 6 is a section on line 6-6 on Figure 1 showing a typical connection of the metal edge of the sash to the wood sash.

Figure 7 is a section on line 7-7 on Fig ure 4.

Figure 8 is a section on line 88 on Figure 1. p

Figure 9 is a section on line 99 on Figure 8.

Figure 10 is a section on line 10-10 on Figure 9.

Figure 11 is a section on line 1111 on Figure 8.

Figure 12 is a section on line 1212 on Figure 11.

Figure 13 is a view showing one of the small rollers which are mounted in the edges of the runway on one side of the window to prevent binding cut on its centerline.

In the drawings I have shown my device as it would be installed in a window in which the lever 1 being mounted upon the square shaft 2 which turns in the sleeve 3 projects through the hole 4 in the side of the window frame. On the outer end of the lever 1 is a knob 5 of any convenient shape so that it may be easily gripped by the thumb and forefinger and turned to operate the device. Orr the opposite end of the shaft 2 is a small gear 6 which meshes in the holes 7 of the large gear 8. The lever 9 by which the gears are shifted to operate either sash is fixedly mounted on the end of the sleeve 3, and when it is desired to operate both of the sash the lever hangs in the over the notch 11.

position shown in Figure 1. When it is desiredto operate only the bottom sash the lever is moved to the right so that it will be over the notch 10 and when it is desired to operate only the upper sash this lever is moved to the left so that it will be The sleeve 3 is held in the frame in the hole 4 and also supported in the metal frame 12 and on its opposite end is fixedly mounted a small lever 13 in the end of which the rod 14 is freely pivot ed. The opposite end of the rod 14 is freely pivoted to the lever 15' which is held on its pivot 16 in the lower projection 17 of the frame 12. Upon the sleeve 3 is also mounted the latch 18 which fits in the notch 19 of the frame 12 and normally holds the lever 9 in the position shown, so that the device 'will normally operate both of the sash.

The gear 8 and another gear 20, which is similar to it, are both fixedly mounted upon a common shaft 21 which is held in the sides 22 of the frame 12. Both of these gears have teeth on their other edges which engage the small gears mounted upon the vertical spindles. The small gear 23 meshes with the large gear 8 and is slidably mounted on the square spindle 24 whose lower end turns freely in a sleeve 25 which is held in holes in the flanges 26 of the frame 12 and whose lower end bears upon the lever 15 when in the position shown. On the upper end of the sleeve 25 is a flange 27 which rests upon the top of the flange 26 and prevents the sleeve from moving downward when the lever 15 moves downward.

The small gear 28 which meshes with the large gear is slidably mounted on the square spindle 29 and the lower end of the spindle is held in the sleeve 30 with a flange 31 on its upper end and the sleeve 30 is held in holes in the flanges 32 of the frame 12 and has an action similar to that of the sleeve 25. In the lower ends of the sleeves and are pins 33 and 34 which rest upon the top of the lever 15 and as one end of the lever 15 is raised it pushes this pin and the sleeve at this end upward so as to raise the small gear on top of the sleeve and take it out of mesh with the large gear.

As the lever 1 is turned the small gear 6 turns the gear 8 and the gear 20 in the same direction thereby causing the small gears 23 and 28 to revolve in opposite directions which would cause one sash to raise and the other to lower.

On the top of the spindle 24 is a worm gear 35 which meshes with the teeth in gear 36 and this in turn meshes with the teeth in rack 37. On the upper end of the spindle 29 is a worm gear 38 slidably mounted upon the spindle and held in the bearings 39 as shown in Figure 7. These bearings are held in holes in flanges in the bracket 40 which is held on the pin 41 and this is held in the brackets 42 and 43 which are bolted to the metal casing 44 by the bolts 45. On the pin 41 a small gear 46 is rotatably mounted which meshes with the Worm 38 and a rack 47 by projecting through the slot 48 of the casing 44.

The gear 36 is mounted on brackets similar to those which hold the gear 46 and the construction for holding the rack 37 is similar to that of holding the rack 47 so I will now proceed to describe the manner in which the rack 47 is supported and operated which description will also apply to the rack 37.

The rack 47 is constructed of a round bar with teeth projecting from one side as shown in Figures 4 and 7. This round rod is held in a cylindrical section 49 of the cap 50 which is held on the side of the sash by the screws 51 as shown in Figure 6. The heads of the screws 51v lit in recesses 52 of the cap 50 and springs 53 fit around the outer side of the recesses 52 and bear against the wood which is the side of the sash, thus providing a means of adjustment which will automatically take care of the shrinkage or contraction of the sash or frame. These screws may be placed at intervals along the side of the frame as often as may be desired.

At the top and bottom of the cylindrical shaped section 49 are clips 54 which hold the rack 47 in place. From the back of the rack a lug 55 projects through the slot 56 in the section 49 and to the outer end of the lug 55 is connected a spring 57 the opposite to swing the sash open the latch 59 is pulled outward to the dotted position shown in Figure 4 and turned either to the right or left so that the notches 6O engage the side of the cap 50 thereby holding it in this position, which movement revolves the rack 47 in its socket and causes it to turn one quarter of one revolution. In doing this the teeth on the rack 47 pass through the tooth shaped slots 61 of the cap 50shown in Figure 5 and' the entire rack is then inside of the cap. hen the window is again closed the latch 59 is turned to release itself and the spring 57 pulls the rack 47 back to the position as shown in Figure 4.

The side of the casing 44 is made in two pieces, one for the upper part of the window and the other for the lower part, or if desired it may be made in several sections each fitting together by prongs projecting from the top of one section and fitting into holes in the bottom of the section above it and each section being shaped in its cross-section as shown in Figure 4. On the inner or lower side of the sectionas shown in Figure 4 is a flange 62 which is bolted to the window frame and from this flange the section 44 bends outward and around a wire 63 which acts as a stiffener and whose end also projects beyond the end of the section to form the prongs which sticks into a hole formed by a similar bend in the section above it. From this point the section 44 is straight until it gets nearly to the center of the sash to where it bends backward to form a recess for the rack 47 and is then straight to the corner of the sash where it is bent around another wire 64 similar to the wire 63 and is then bent outward and then straight so that the upper and outer sash will be a little smaller than the lower or inner sash. At the other side of this sash the section 44 bends upward to form a, stop and then bends around another wire 65 similar to' the wire 63 from where it bends backward and out-- ward to form a flange on the outer side of the window frame.

On the opposite of the sash is a section 66, the inner or lower side, as shown in Figure 8, forming a flange which bolts against the window frame and from this flange the section is bent upward and around a wire 67 similar to the wire 63 hereinbefore described and from here it bends backward to form a recess 68. It is then straight to the other side of the sash where it makes another bend to form the recess 69 and then'bends outward to form a stop for the lower sash, from where it bends around another wire 70 similar to the wire 63. It then forms another recess 71 from where it is straight to the other side of the sash where it forms another recess 72 then from there it bends outward and around another wire 73 similar to the wire 63 and then out to form the flange which bolts to the outer side of the window frame. The metal cap 74 bent as shown in Figure 8 is fastened onthe side of the sash and on the inner sideof the cap is a recess 7 5, the side of which is punched outward to form lugs 76 as shown in Figure 12, which lugs form a stop for holding the sash in the hook shaped bends 77 of the wire 78. In the center of 1:

the cap 74 a recess 79 extends along its entire length to allow a space for the teeth of the small gear 'to project. The wire 78 is held in the member 80 which in turn is held in the recesses 68 and 69 of the section 66. At

and is bent to form the hook 77. When. ast sembling the sash is held into position so that the lugs 76 in the cap 74 are directly above the hook 77 and then they slide down into the hooks so that the sash will hang on them and may be swung in or out about the hinge formed by the wire 78 in the member 80. In the other edges of the member 80 are round holes 82 as shown in Figure 9 in which are rollers 83, bent as shown in Figure 13 so that only two points will bear against the walls of the recesses at one time which will prevent any binding as the mem ber 80 moves upward or downward. In the center of the member 80 are holes 84 which form a rack in which the gear 85 meshes. The gear 85 is freely mounted on a shaft 86 which is held in the frame 87 and this is bolted to the section 66 by the bolts 88. On the opposite side of the gear 85 its teeth mesh with the gear 89 which is fixedly mounted upon the shaft 90 and this is rotatably mounted in holes in the frame 87. On the shaft 90 a coil spring 91 is fixedly attached, the opposite end of which is attached to the shaft 86 so that as the sash moves downward the member 80 revolves A the gear 85 in a clockwise direction and this in turn revolves the gear 89 in a counterclockwise direction, thus winding up the spring and as you start to raise the window the spring will cause the gears to rotate in the opposite direction thereby pushing upward on this side of the window.

On the shaft 86 is also a yoke 92 which when the window is closed remains in the position as shown in Figure 10." One end of this yoke projects upward and has a small gear 93 mounted on it by the pin 94:. This small gear meshes in the holes 84 of the member on the side of the gear and a little above it. As it is on the side of the gear the outer edge of the teeth come into contact with a corner on the recess 79 of the section 7a which holds the gear outward to the position shown, and as the window is swung open the gear will be free to move outward until the edge of the teeth are on the same plane as the edge of the gear 85 which action will cause the lower part of the yoke to move from its full line position as shown in Figure 10 to the position shown in dotted lines.

A gear similar to the gear 85 is mounted upon a shaft 96 and held in a frame 97' in which is also held another gear, spring, and latch for operating the upper sash similar to those hereinbefore described for operating the lower sash, all constructed and assembled exactly the same with the evccp tion of the yoke being placed on top of the gears instead of below them and a small gear on the extended end of the yoke thereby coming below the gears so as to lock them in the opposite direction. 7

It will be understood that other changes in the construction can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. One of which changes may be in the omission of the lever 1 and a small electric, or air motor installed on the shaft 2 to operate the device, another mav be in a different arrangement of the gears by using one gear instead of the two gears Nos. 8 and 20, or in the use of one shaft extending upward and obtaining the reverse motion by suing worms which will cause the gears to turn in the opposite direction or by using bevelled gears. Another change may be made in the shape of the casing on either side of the window and still another may be in the use of a different style of hinge or of a diflerent 2LT. rangement of gears and spring for assisting the main device in raising the sash from the opposite side.

The operation will be readily understood from the foregoing description. To use the device when it is installed as shown in the drawings the lever 1 would be turned in a clockwise direction which acting through the gears would cause the lower sash to raise and the upper sash to lower or if it isonly desired to lower the upper sash the lever 9 is pushed to the left and this will cause the small gear 28 to raise until it is out of mesh with the gear 20, then as the handle is turned it only operates the small gear 23 which revolves the worm 35 and lowers the upper sash,

To swing the window open the small latch 59 is pulled outward which turns the rack 4:7 one quarter of a revolution and permits the side of the sash to swing outward on the hinge as hereinbefore described, it may then be lifted off of the hinge, and replaced as desired.

It will be seen that the worm gears prevent the sash from being moved by taking hold of the sash, therefore the window is absolutely locked in any position.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A'device of the class. described comprising a pair of gears mounted in the lower side of a window frame; a smaller gear meshin with one of the former gears and mounted on a shaft projecting through an opening in the frame; a-handle on the outer end of the shaft; other smaller gears on substantially vertical shafts meshing with the former pair of gears; means for shifting the latter smaller gears out of engagement with the larger gears; worm gears at the upper ends of the vertical spindles; smaller gears mounted in a frame which mesh with the worm gears and also with racks on the side of the window sash; other gears meshing with a raclc on the opposite side of the window; springs on the gears which wind up as the sash moves downward; a smaller gear also meshing in the rack; .nd levers for mounting the smaller gear arranged in such a manner that they will lock the gears operated by the spring when the sash isopen; said window being provided with a suitable metal frame, and said sash having metal edges in which the racks may be placed, one of which edges. provided with notches which may fit over projections on a sliding section of the frame to form a hinge.

2. A window having a metal frame, metal edges on the sash, hinges at the edge of the sash by which they may be swung outward at any position. means for automatically locking the sash in any position, racks in the sides of the sash, pinions in the frames meshing with the racks, and a suitable means for rotating the pinions to move the sash upward or downward from a point in the lower part of the sash.

lVILLIAM F. ROTERMUND. 

